Managing society’s ills may be wearing on Pederson

There are daily COVID-19 tests, temperature checks, masks, questionnaires, QR codes, tracers ... you name it. They’re all there to identify infections and keep coaches and players safe.

Then there’s a virtual offseason, the elimination of the preseason, social justice committees, team meetings about racial inequality and player demonstration proposals, including a potential walkout on game day.

Doug Pederson didn’t sign up for any of that when he became the 22nd head coach of the Eagles four years ago. And it’s wearing on him. Coaching no longer is primarily about managing the quarterback position, identifying the best 53 players who fit your schemes and figuring out what to call on fourth-and-goal at the 1-yard line in the Super Bowl.

For Pederson, one of 27 white head coaches in the NFL, it’s what to say to a team that is 77 percent African-American and wants solutions, not just awareness of racial and social injustices personified by the police shootings of George Floyd and Jacob Blake. Pederson, the long-ago backup quarterback, sincerely feels the pain of the players.

“A lot of our players, a lot of our black players are hurting from the standpoint of this is close to home for many of them,” Pederson said. “So, for me, it’s about understanding, it’s about learning, it’s about gaining knowledge, and then being able to support our guys.”

Contrast that with Flyers coach Alan Vigneault in the thick of a Stanley Cup playoff series while NBA and MLB games were postponed as anger raged over the death of Blake, shot by a white cop in Kenosha, Wis.

Vigneault thought his job was figuring out which lines to play, how to fix the power play and inspiring confidence in his goalie. He created a furor by honestly conceding he was unaware that the NBA postponed its playoff games, that three MLB games and five MLS matches were postponed and that several NFL teams canceled practices through Thursday.

The penalty for not commenting on the off-the-ice developments for him was social media scorn and derision. It led to a public redress by Vigneault Saturday that was more explanation than apology.

It’s the world we now live in.

Pederson is savvy enough to know he cannot take on all the responsibilities and challenges without help. When he says he has reached out to colleagues, it’s a slam dunk he’s vented with Andy Reid and Frank Reich. Working equality and change and keeping your players pushing forward isn’t in the coaching manuals.

“I think it has to be a collaborative effort,” Pederson said. “I think the coaches have to be united. I think the coaches have to support players, and that’s the one message that I’m hearing from the guys that I’ve talked to is how much they support their players during times like this. I guess even in this pandemic, too, with

COVID, we’re having to protect the players but learning how to protect our families, too, when we go home, and being able to educate them.”

Though it’s not known how the Eagles will make their social injustice statement, Pederson and the players have a pretty good idea what the options are. Around the NFL there are whispers about demonstrations with players refusing to play, much like those that featured NBA and NHL players.

National anthem demonstrations, jersey patches, helmet decals and locked arms almost certainly will be part of gameday actions. If players bail out on a game, Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie says he has their backs.

“I’m not concerned because I’m supportive of everything that’s involved in terms of trying to create attention and social change, and I’ve always been that way,” Lurie said in a Sunday Zoom session. “If we have to sacrifice, we have to sacrifice. But my most important opportunity to discuss that would be what can we do something that’s really effective, and it’s not simply a statement but something that’s going to have action involved with it.”

The season opener is two weeks away. Roster cuts are due by 4 p.m. Saturday. The Eagles are trying to work through injuries that have blown up what once was one of football’s best offensive lines. Carson Wentz is nursing a lower body injury, sensational rookie receiver Jalen Reagor a shoulder issue.

There are a ton of critical decisions on Pederson’s plate, including some from the ongoing conversations about social injustice and unity.

“There’s a lot going on right now for head coaches in the NFL, and it’s not just about trying to get the roster to 53,” Pederson said. “It’s social issues. It’s pandemic issues. A lot of these teams are getting ready to travel for road games and things. We’re going to kind of get out of our bubble just a little bit with the season creeping up on us, so we’re dealing with a lot of things.”

It’s enough to overwhelm the toughest coaches.

Or, in the case of Doug Pederson, the ultimate challenge.

Contact Bob Grotz at bgrotz@21stcenturymedia.com; follow him on Twitter @ BobGrotz.